The best Rheumatology Service in Spain

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According to the Spanish Rheumatology Society, the Hospital Sanitas CIMA offers the most comprehensive, personalised and safe treatment in Spain.

In the image, Doctors Ferrán García and Violant Poca of the Hospital Sanitas CIMA Barcelona.

The Spanish Rheumatology Society (SER for the Spanish acronym) has recognised the excellence of the Hospital Sanitas CIMA Barcelona in the diagnosis and comprehensive treatment of rheumatoid arthritis patients. The prevalence of this disease is between 0.5 and 0.8% of the Spanish population, which means that it affects around a quarter of a million people in Spain.

The assessment carried out by the Spanish Rheumatology Society analysed the data of close to half of the specialist units caring for this type of patient, including public and private centres throughout the ry, and in its conclusion it assigned the highest score of 77.94% to the Rheumatology department of the Hospital Sanitas CIMA. The second centre in this ranking obtained a score of 66.37% and the average score of the participating centres was 58.12%. "It gives us a great sense of pride to receive this recognition from the highest scientific authority in the field of rheumatology and it reinforces our belief in our idea of offering comprehensive, personalised and safe care to our patients. I would like to thank all the members of our Rheumatology department, led by Dr Violant Poca and Dr Ferrán García, for reaching this level of excellence in patient care", explained Dr Antoni Giró, managing director of the CIMA Campus, which comprises the Hospital Sanitas CIMA and the network of Milenium Centres.

The Spanish Rheumatology Society carried out an exhaustive assessment and took into ac all the phases of the diagnosis, treatment and monitoring process for patients with rheumatoid arthritis. In its report, the SER states that the Rheumatology department at the Hospital Sanitas CIMA affords patients an early diagnosis which makes it possible to commence treatment in less than two weeks. This is a key factor in care excellence, as it facilitates the adoption of therapeutic measures in the shortest time frame and allows patients to the treatment process to alleviate their condition. This is particularly important in a condition such as rheumatoid arthritis. "It is a systemic pathology whose first symptom is the inflammation of the membrane that covers the cartilages of the ts. This inflammation causes pain and stiffness, and affects the hands, the feet, the elbows, the shoulders, the hips, the knees and the ankles. Naturally, it has a very negative impact on the quality of life of sufferers and, depending on its level of severity, it can be incapacitating. Furthermore, if it is not diagnosed and treated, it can end up causing deformities in the ts and loss of mobility", explained Dr Violant Poca.

A specialist assessment, fundamental

The causes of rheumatoid arthritis are still unknown, such that it is not possible to act preventively, but its range of symptoms is greatly studied and an early diagnosis permits the commencement of a fast treatment. In this sense, when the disease is in its initial phase the diagnosis is more complex, as it depends to a large extent on the professional training of the rheumatologist performing the clinical examination. "We are lucky enough to have a team of top level specialists and I think this is something that has not gone unnoticed in the assessment by the experts from the scientific society", underlined Dr Giró, general director of the centre.

In the treatment sphere, the report of the Spanish Rheumatology Society highlights that the specialists of the Hospital Sanitas CIMA personalise each treatment as much as possible and that they take each decision in accordance with the situation of each patient to avoid risk situations associated with treatment for other health conditions, such as arterial hypertension, dyslipidaemia and diabetes mellitus. "This is one of the values of our commitment to excellence when caring for each patient so that they can live a longer, healthier and happier life. In this sense, we reiterate to each patient the importance of not smoking; we control their diet, their weight and their cardiovascular risk", added Dr Ferrán García.

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